Princeton Advances to Quarterfinals After Win Over Wake Forest, 3-1

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - Kathleen Sharkey and Julia Reinprecht each had a goal and an assist to lead the sixth-ranked Princeton field hockey team to a 3-1 win over 13th-ranked Wake Forest on Saturday afternoon in the opening round of the 2010 NCAA Field Hockey Championships played at Virginia.

The first half was primarily dominated by strong defense as neither team allowed the other to generate much offense. The only two goals in the half came as the result of penalty corners. Wake Forest converted first when Kerry Egan redirected a Lizzie Rae pass into the Tiger goal in the 25th minute. Princeton evened the score on its fourth corner of the half when Sharkey fed Julia Reinprecht on the far post for her third goal of the season. Wake Forest outshot and outcornered Princeton 5-4 in the opening half.

Princeton grabbed its first lead of the game three minutes into the second half when Sharkey scored her 32nd goal of the season off a blast on a direct corner. Julia Reinprecht provided the insert and Alexandra Douwes the stop as Princeton went ahead 2-1.

Once Princeton gained the lead, the Tigers clamped down defensively to limit Wake Forest's chances over the remainder of the half. Wake Forest's best chance to even the score came around the 45-minute mark when Tiger goalkeeper Christina Maida stopped consecutive shots from Faith Adams and Jess McFadven in a short span.

On the offensive side, Princeton continued to pressure Wake Forest goalkeeper Kaitlyn Ruhf and added an insurance goal with eight minutes to play from Katie Reinprecht, who dribbled past Ruhf as she came out to meet her and scored into the open goal for her 12th tally of the season. Reinprecht was playing in her first game since Oct. 17 at Connecticut after missing the final four games of the regular season due to injury.

Princeton outshot Wake Forest 16-9, while corners were even with seven to each side. Maida stopped four shots for the win, while her counterpart Ruhf had six saves.

Princeton is now 14-4 overall and advances to the NCAA quarterfinals on Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m., against third-ranked Virginia. The Cavaliers posted a 2-1 win when the teams met in the regular season.